Posts Tagged ‘Windows Store’

We often get asked about what we are working on. While you can be sure we are always working, and that our work probably involves some version of PocketBible, we understand you may be interested in a more detailed explanation of what is going on behind the scenes. It is in that spirit that we are going to try something new with an occasional post on what’s in the pipeline for apps and books.

You’ll notice we don’t talk about release dates. We’ve been in this business for a long time and have learned that our best-laid plans often go awry. In fact, in the software business, that’s the rule rather than the exception. So we don’t spit into that wind nor tilt at those windmills. We’re pursuing the goals you see below at our best pace and will release new books and updates to our apps as soon as they’re ready.

Apps

PocketBible for Android – Working on minor bug fixes and improvements, releasing minor updates as needed.

PocketBible for iOS – Version 3.4.0 is current. Currently working on a major re-write to support scrolling of the text (in addition to the current paging mode) and simplifying highlighting, bookmarking, and text selection. This will be version 4.0.

Books

Here’s what our editorial team has in the queue for you (not in any particular order):

Additional volumes of the Ancient Christian Commentary Series (IVP)

Fixing typos and tagging issues in several titles

Additional Greek NT resources

NIV Exhaustive Concordance

Tree of Life Version (TLV)

Disclaimers: All this is subject to change in priority, feasibility, copyright licensing, etc. That means we reserve the right to never release these features or books. We are sharing with you the current plan which is written in sand, not stone. Also, just because something is not on this list doesn’t mean we are not considering it. Finally, we are open to your requests, suggestions and comments!

Are you the happy recipient of a new phone or tablet? Or a new Mac or PC? Congratulations! Here is what you need to know to get PocketBible on it!

First an important reminder – you never have to re-purchase any Laridian Bibles or books when you move to a new device. You may have to re-install a new version of PocketBible and download your books again but that is all FREE and we’ll try to make that as painless as possible with the tips in this article.

Install Guide by Device Type

Find your device type in the list below and follow the instructions from there:

iPhone/iPad/iPod touch (iOS) – go to the App Store from your device and search for PocketBible Bible Study. Download the free app and register it using your existing Laridian ID (or email address on file) and password. Tap on the Menu icon and choose Add/Remove Books. Go through the list of your books (should include all your previous purchases and free books) and tap on any you want to download at this time (you can always return to this list and download more later). Hit UPDATE at the top of the page to start the downloads.

Android OS – go to the Google Play store on your device (or Amazon App store if you prefer) and search for PocketBible Bible Study. Download the free PocketBible app. Register using your existing Laridian account information. Tap on the Dove icon and choose to Download Books. You should see your previously purchased titles along with all free books. Tap on each book you want to download (you have to do this one at a time). Check out our Android OS videos at our Youtube channel for some tips on using PocketBible for Android.

Kindle Fire – we are still working with Amazon to get our Android version of PocketBible to show up in the Kindle Store. In the meantime, follow the instructions at this link to download PocketBible from our site and install as a 3rd party app. HDX owners you can watch a video of how to install.

Windows Phone – Microsoft hides most of the free apps on their app store even if you search by the exact name of the program. The best way to find PocketBible for Windows Phone is to select a link on our site, like this one. Download the free PocketBible app for Windows Phone and install it. Register using your existing Laridian account information. Choose the Cloud Library from the menu. Tap on any title to download. Open downloaded books from the Device Library.

Windows Surface or Windows 10 – Like the Windows Phone Store, Microsoft hides most of the free apps for Windows. The only way to find apps is if you already have a link to them. You can download PocketBible here. It’s free. Run it, then register using your existing Laridian account information. Choose the Cloud Library from the menu. Tap on any title to download. Open downloaded books from the Device Library menu.

If you have personal data (i.e. notes, bookmarks, highlights) to transfer from an older device, first sync the data from the old device to our server (you can do this manually if you haven’t been doing it automatically), then enable automatic synchronization on your new device. Do a manual sync the first time to make sure you have all the data.

One final note – Advanced Feature Sets are sold separately for each operating system. So, for example, even if you own the Advanced Feature Set for your iPhone, you’ll still need to purchase the specific Advanced Feature Set for your Surface Pro or Mac OS X. However, if you own an iPhone and iPad, since they are the same operating system, you only need one copy for both devices.

All of our PocketBible smartphone and tablet apps (Android, Windows Phone/Store and iOS) have a similar feature you can use to quickly move from one book to the other.

Tap on the title bar in a pane and you’ll get a drop-down list of what you have open in that pane. This works the same way in each pane you have open. From there you can tap on the title of another book in the list to move to it; you may be able to close a book or open another book as well (varies by OS). This simple way of managing books makes it easier to get your panes setup like you want as you study the Bible.

Here is a quick video demonstration of this feature using PocketBible for Android:

On my phone, I like to use two panes and keep my Bibles in one pane and my other type books in the second pane. I also have my apps set to sync books by verse so that my Bibles and commentaries always stay on the same verse. On my iPad, I use tabs for each category of book so I can quickly switch between type of book but when I am in a particular tab, like Bibles, I can use the title bar to quickly switch between my different Bibles.

Questions or tips for other users? Please share in the comments below!

NOTE: Some of the features mentioned above may require the purchase of the Advanced Feature Set for $6.99.

NOTE: There is a known issue in displaying images with Windows 8.1 that has been submitted to Microsoft (slows down app). Images are temporarily turned off in the program, however, there is an option in the program to turn images back on if you’d like.

Windows 8 users, this one’s for you! We are pleased to announce the availability of PocketBible on the Windows Store. Download it now for free!

PocketBible for Windows Store runs on devices using Windows 8 (includes tablets, laptops, desktops). We think you’ll find this an amazing new version of PocketBible with a true Windows 8 look and feel! PocketBible for Windows Store features include:

40+ Free Bibles and books with registration. Download past purchases of Bibles and books into the app at no charge. The 20 title download limit in the app can be exceeded with purchase of Advanced Feature Set ($6.99).

Move easily through Bibles and books by simply scrolling. Quickly move around the bible using an intuitive table of contents display

Quickly find any word or phrase

Split screen display

Mark your place with bookmarks

Share verses by Text, Email or Facebook

Use the daily reading feature to visually track your progress through a devotional book

Pin a book to your start screen!

We hope you’ll support continued development of PocketBible on this platform by purchasing the Advanced Feature Set for $6.99. Advanced Features include:

Highlighting of Bible text

Add notes to any verse of the Bible

Synchronize bookmarks, highlights and bookmarks with our server and your other devices that use PocketBible (and are able to synchronize)

Split screen into 2 to 5 windows

Download as many Bibles and books as you own (no limit but based on what you own)